Former New York State Deputy Chief of Staff and former Deputy Commissioner of the State Department of Labor, Linda Sun (41 years old), and her husband Chris Hu (40 years old) were arrested on Tuesday morning, as reported by a journalist in New York. The prosecution accused Sun of violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act, acting on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party, as well as visa fraud, human smuggling, and money laundering conspiracy. Hu was charged with money laundering conspiracy, conspiracy to commit bank fraud, and misuse of identity identification. After appearing in court, they were released on bail, with travel restrictions and prohibited from contacting the Chinese Consulate and its delegation.
As the prosecution pointed out, the defendants held key positions in the New York State government, ostensibly serving the people of New York, but in reality, they were promoting the interests of the Chinese government and the CCP. This illegal scheme allowed the defendants’ family to profit millions of dollars. The prosecutor stated, “We will vigorously prosecute those acting as undisclosed agents of foreign governments.”
Mr. Pierce expressed gratitude to the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, the Office of the Inspector General of the State of New York, the New York State Police, and the Diplomatic Security Service of the U.S. Department of State for their assistance in this case.
FBI Assistant Deputy Director Curtis stated, “Former New York State government employee Linda Sun acted as a secret agent of the Chinese government, while her husband facilitated millions of dollars in kickbacks for personal gain. Sun, leveraging her influence in high places, clandestinely pushed forward the agendas of China and the CCP, directly threatening the national security of the United States.”
Linda Sun came to the U.S. at the age of 5 with her parents and is fluent in Chinese. In 2009, she was hired as the chief of staff for then-New York State Assemblyman Meng Zhaowen (currently a member of Congress), and in 2012, she joined the New York State government under then-Governor Cuomo. She held various positions in the New York State government, including Director of Asian Affairs, Global Trade Manager and External Affairs Director at the Empire State Development Corporation, Deputy Director of Diversity Affairs at the New York State Financial Department, and Director of Diversity Affairs.
When Hu Chu took over as governor in 2021, Linda Sun was appointed as his Deputy Chief of Staff. In September 2022, Linda Sun became the Deputy Commissioner of Strategic Business Development at the New York State Department of Labor, her highest position in 14 years of government service, but she resigned in March 2023. A spokesperson for the Hu Chu administration stated that Linda was dismissed after evidence of her misconduct was discovered.
“This individual has been employed by the executive council for over a decade. Following the discovery of evidence of her misconduct, we terminated her employment in March 2023, reported her actions to law enforcement immediately, and assisted law enforcement throughout the process,” the statement read.
Hu’s business projects, managed by her husband, Chris Hu, included: (a) establishing a seafood export company in Queens in March 2016; (b) founding Golden Capital Group LLC in February 2016; (c) establishing Leyun Winery in Queens in June 2021. In addition, Hu frequently used the services of a transportation company based in Queens, which was authorized by the Chinese government as a freight agent, and the company’s owner was a close friend of Hu’s.
The indictment outlined multiple interactions Sun had with officials from the New York Consulate in January 2021, when Cuomo was still governor and Hu was deputy governor. The documents did not mention the names of the two leaders but referred to them as “Politician 1” and “Politician 2,” respectively.
The document also did not mention the names of the four New York Consulate officials but referred to them as Chinese Official 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively. Numbers 1 and 2 were senior officials at the New York Consulate, while 3 and 4 were political officials in the consulate.
According to the indictment, while serving in the New York State government, Sun participated in various political activities at the request of Chinese government officials and CCP representatives to promote Chinese interests. This included blocking Taiwan government representatives from contacting the New York State Governor’s Office, altering the New York Governor’s statements on important China and CCP issues, obtaining unauthorized proclamations for CCP government representatives from the New York Governor, attempting to facilitate Politician 2 (Hu Chu) to go to China, and arranging meetings between CCP government visitation delegations and New York State government officials.
Sun also repeatedly violated internal rules and procedures of the New York State government by providing undue benefits to Chinese and CCP representatives, including providing unauthorized invitations to facilitate CCP government officials entering the U.S. for meetings with New York State government officials. These actions constituted false statements related to immigration documents and induced foreign citizens to enter the U.S. illegally.
In return, Sun received substantial economic and other benefits from the Chinese government and CCP representatives, including facilitating multimillion-dollar transactions for her husband’s business activities in China, travel perks, event tickets, promoting business for close family friends, providing employment opportunities for Sun’s cousin in China, and receiving Nanjing-style salted duck prepared by the private chef of New York Consulate Official 1, which was sent to Sun’s parents’ residence.
Sun and Hu laundered the monetary proceeds of this scheme by purchasing real estate worth $4.1 million in Manhasset, Long Island, a $2.1 million apartment in Honolulu, various luxury cars including a 2024 Ferrari.
However, Sun never disclosed any benefits she received from the Chinese government and CCP representatives to the New York State government, which was her obligation as a New York State government employee.
Hu also laundered money through bank accounts opened in the names of close relatives. To open these accounts, Hu illegally used images of relatives’ driver’s licenses, but in reality, these accounts were intended for Hu’s sole use.
Sun never registered with the U.S. Department of Justice as a foreign agent, actively concealing the fact that she was taking actions based on orders, requests, or instructions from the Chinese government and CCP representatives.
In July 2020, during an interview with FBI agents, Sun made false statements about the purpose of her trip to China, concealing the fact that this trip was arranged and funded by co-conspirators representing the CCP. In a meeting with the Office of the Inspector General of New York in February 2023, she falsely claimed to have participated in Asian community events in a personal capacity rather than in her capacity as Deputy Commissioner of the Department of Labor, and denied applying for proclamations from the governor. In reality, she had obtained and submitted proclamations for New York Consulate Official 1.
The indictment accuses Sun of participating in political activities as directed by the Chinese government and CCP representatives in an attempt to influence public perceptions of China, including the New York State government. She tried to prevent Taiwan representatives from meeting with New York State officials, catering to CCP political demands. Additionally, Sun acquired and displayed unauthorized proclamations from the New York Governor for New York Consulate high officials, and tried to arrange for officials from Henan Province to visit the U.S. and invite Hu Chu to visit China, all at the request of the Chinese government and CCP representatives.
The relationship between Taiwan and China is a complex international issue. Since the 1970s, Taiwan and China have been competing for diplomatic recognition globally, with most countries maintaining informal bilateral relationships with Taiwan. While the U.S. recognizes China’s sovereignty over Taiwan, it maintains unofficial relations with Taiwan and has the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Washington, D.C.
According to the indictment, former and current governors of New York did not set policies on whether to formally recognize Taiwan, and as a result, their offices did not develop policies on interactions or meetings with Taiwan representatives. In fact, representatives from the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office often meet with senior U.S. government officials. However, Sun, at the behest of the Consulate, actively reduced interactions between Taiwan government officials and the Governor’s office since 2016.
For example, in written communications with Consulate officials number 1 and number 3, Sun boasted about successfully preventing meetings between the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office and Governor Cuomo and Hu Chu. In exchange, the Consulate provided her and her family with various gifts, including performances, concerts, event tickets, and Nanjing-style salted duck prepared by the private chef of Consulate Official 1. During this time, Sun agreed to meet with Consulate officials and often communicated with them via phone or WeChat.
The following are several specific examples of how Sun, at the request of the Consulate, influenced New York State government officials and public perceptions of Taiwanese policy:
a. On June 9, 2016, Sun wrote to a Consulate official stating, “The Taipei Economic and Cultural Office is trying to ensure that Hu Chu attends the SelectUSA event held in Washington, D.C. They sent invitations to another colleague to bypass me. I am working to resolve this issue.” After the Consulate official replied, “Thank you for letting me know,” Sun responded, “Everything has been taken care of.” Notably, on June 21, Hu Chu attended the 2016 SelectUSA reception organized by the Consulate and the U.S.-China General Chamber of Commerce, rather than an event hosted by Taiwan.
b. In January 2019, Sun wrote to Consulate official number 3, stating, “I value the relationship with the Consulate greatly, and have done a lot during Cuomo’s term to promote the relationship between New York and the Consulate. Of course, I have successfully blocked all relations between New York and the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office. I have rejected all requests from their office.” Official number 3 thanked her, calling her the most critical link between them and Cuomo and his team.
c. On February 27, 2019, Sun instructed a staffer in Cuomo’s office to refuse a meeting request from a mayor in Taiwan. She instructed the staff member, “Reject the request, explain face-to-face.”
d. On July 5, 2019, the Deputy Director from the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office informed Sun that the Taiwanese president would visit New York City on July 12 and invited both Sun and Cuomo to attend a reception in Manhattan. Shortly after, Sun forwarded the invitation to Consulate Official number 4, stating that she would block the event. She later lied to the Taiwan side, claiming that Cuomo could not attend because “he had to host a summer activity day for employees” on that day, even though the dates did not conflict with the Taiwan event.
e. On July 10, 2019, Sun had multiple phone conversations with Consulate officials number 4 and number 1 and sent an email to a staffer in the state executive office, inquiring about “any scheduled events,” ensuring that the Governor would not attend events during the visit of the Taiwanese president.
f. Based on public information and email records, Sun participated in a protest against the Taiwanese President’s visit to New York organized by pro-CCP overseas Chinese organizations on July 12, 2019, and was caught on camera by news media during the event.
g. On August 6, the new Political Affairs Director of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office invited Sun for coffee or to meet in her office for self-introduction. The next day, Sun reported to Consulate Official number 1, “As you know, I have successfully prevented all formal and informal conferences between Cuomo, Hu Chu, and the Economic and Cultural Office. I have kept my relations with them to a minimum.” She inquired how to handle the current requests from the Economic and Cultural Office, stating, “Regarding their current requests, I think it may be best to avoid a visit to the Governor’s office to prevent them from claiming our recognition. However, I want to ensure our understanding is in line.”
h. About a week later on August 13, Sun replied to the Political Affairs Director suggesting a meeting at a chain restaurant near her office. Internal communication records show that Sun and her Director of Asian Affairs met with representatives from the Economic and Cultural Office on August 20.
i. On August 21, Sun told Consulate official number 4, “The Economic and Cultural Office in some ways is better than you guys. They regularly invite me for coffee. Other elected representatives do the same. Not everyone is like me.” She continued, “This may help build better relationships. Not everyone needs to drink coffee, but we maintain regular contact.”
j. At the end of August, Sun made changes to a draft statement from Cuomo, deleting all references to the “Republic of China” to avoid recognition of Taiwan.
k. On September 5, the Political Affairs Director of the Economic and Cultural Office invited Cuomo to attend Taiwan’s Double Tenth National Day celebrations. After staff members of the Governor’s office asked for Sun’s opinion on an appropriate response, Sun suggested not to attend and instructed the Director of Asian Affairs in the Governor’s office on September 12, “No messages, no representatives. We do not want her involved in sensitive issues between China and Taiwan.”
l. On January 13, 2020, the Ambassador from the Economic and Cultural Office informed Cuomo of the results of the Taiwan presidential election and invited him to send congratulatory messages: “I would be delighted to convey your message to Taipei.” A staff member of the Governor’s office forwarded the letter to Sun, seeking her opinion. Sun responded, “Do not send the message; it will cause a political storm.”
m. On April 17, when Taiwan donated 200,000 masks to New York State, the Economic and Cultural Office requested to arrange a telephone conference with Cuomo. Sun did not respond, and when the Economic and Cultural Office staff followed up with Sun, pointing out that “members of the U.S.-Taiwan community have been asking our office why the Taiwan government did not donate to the hardest-hit New York and why they did not see any public announcements from the state government,” Sun informed Consulate official number 1 about the situation and stated that she would arrange for Cuomo to call and express gratitude. She stated, “Just informing you.”
n. On October 25, Consulate official number 2 praised Cuomo’s response to the pandemic, to which Sun replied that she had corrected a press release to avoid referring to Taiwan as a country. She said, “I am still responsible for all Asian affairs. A few weeks ago, we released a presser about international travel—when we referred to Taiwan as a country, I almost had a heart attack, but fortunately, the news team immediately rectified it.”
o. On December 22, 2021, the Economic and Cultural Office requested a meeting between the Ambassador and New Deputy Governor of New York. Sun suggested avoiding such meetings, saying in an internal email, “I recommend not attending this meeting. It is a very sensitive topic.” In subsequent emails, Sun further suggested that “any contact with the Economic and Cultural Office” should “remain at the staff level.”
p. On April 21, 2022, the Governor’s office received an invitation setting May 8 to 15 as “Taiwanese American Heritage Week.” When Governor’s office staff inquired about the appropriate response, Sun suggested not to release the news. On May 2, a New York State Council member invited Cuomo to meet with the Ambassador of the Economic and Cultural Office, and when asked whether Cuomo should attend the meeting, Sun replied, “No need for the meeting. Kindly decline it. We do not want her to be involved in sensitive issues between China and Taiwan.”
(to be continued)